Scripture for Today, 9-6-19: Feeding 5,000

Feeding 5,000
One of the most familiar Bible stories is that of Yeshua (Jesus) feeding the five thousand.  This is the only one of Messiah’s miracles recorded in all four gospels.  He demonstrated compassion, ability to meet human needs and perform an amazing miracle that only God could do. 
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Archaeologists Find Mosaic On Floor of 6th Century Church

Matthew 14:17; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:12-17; John 6:1-14

9-5-19, JERUSALEM -- Israeli archaeologists discovered an unusually well-preserved mosaic apparently depicting the miracle of the Lord Jesus Christ feeding the 5,000 as recorded in all four of the New Testament Gospels. The excavation is called "Hippos-Sussita" excavation site.

The mosaic floor of an early 4th century Christian Church overlooking the Sea of Galilee was discovered; it is well preserved because it was covered with the ash from the church being burned.  When archaeologists broke through the ash layer, they found a colorful mosaic depicting images of baskets with loaves and fish, a miracle that is believed to have occurred close to the Sea of Galilee.

Dr. Michael Eisenberg, head of the excavation team in Hippos on behalf of the Institute of Archaeology at the University of Haifa, Israel said, "There can certainly be different explanations to the descriptions of loaves and fish in the mosaic, but you cannot ignore the similarity to the description in the New Testament: for example, from the fact that the New Testament has a description of five loaves in a basket or the two fish depicted in the apse, as we find in the mosaic." ​More here and here

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Bible Report: The Feeding of the Five Thousand
"The apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told Him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught. 31And He said unto them, "Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat." 32And they departed into a desert place by ship privately. 33And the people saw them departing, and many knew Him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him. 34And Jesus, when He came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and He began to teach them many things. 35And when the day was now far spent, His disciples came unto Him, and said, "This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed: 36Send them away, that they may go into the country round about, and into the villages, and buy themselves bread: for they have nothing to eat." 37He answered and said unto them, "Give ye them to eat. And they say unto Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat?" 38He saith unto them, "How many loaves have ye? go and see." And when they knew, they say, "Five and two fishes."

39He commanded them to make all sit down by companies upon the green grass. 40And they sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties. 41And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, He looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided He among them all.

42And they did all eat, and were filled. 43And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes. 44And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men." [plus women and children] Mark 6:30-44